About Little Jo's Nursery and Pre-School

Little Jo's Nursery and Pre-School was awarded OUTSTANDING by OFSTED in January 2016.

We are close to Barnsley Town Centre and only a two minute walk from the Alhambra Centre.

The indoor Environment has three individual units. The rooms are open, bright and planned to meet children’s learning and development needs. There is a baby room, a toddler room and a Pre-School unit. The environment is split into areas of individual learning intentions and choice, with both planned activities and continuous provision available. Within each unit there are areas for play, rest, privacy and personal care.

The outdoor environment provides a safe and secure learning area that is an extension of the indoors. It further supports children’s learning and development. We implement free flow play to ensure individual learning needs and styles are met. The environment is split into areas of individual learning intentions and choice, with both planned activities and continuous provision available.

The local Pennine Trail provides a rich learning environment where all children can access real experiences enabling them to make links in their learning and engage with their local community. The outdoor environments encourage children to assess risk, be challenged and explore in different ways to those indoors. Children are introduced to the wider community through outings to farms, supermarkets, post office, library etc., to broaden their understanding and underpin their knowledge.

The Curriculum:

Little Jo's Nursery has adopted the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework (EYFS) which sets out the expected learning and development stages for children as they grow from birth to five years. For those working in the early years - whether in a nursery, pre-school, a childminder or in a reception class in school - the EYFS outlines what they need to do to support your child.

The Early Years Foundation Stage

The Early Years Foundation Stage Framework (EYFS) provides guidance and statutory support for the education and care of all children in an Early Years Provision, including children with special educational needs and disabilities. We know that children are born ready, able and eager to learn. They learn and develop in different ways and development is not an automatic process. Little Jo’s provides the means by which they can thrive.

Whilst children’s individual characteristics of effective learning influence their development children make better progress with the support of experienced adults and well planned environments that are provided at Little Jo’s. All children at Little Jo’s Day Nursery and pre-school are encouraged to learn holistically through play. Our Curriculum covers all the key areas of learning and is designed to meet the needs of the individual child.

The framework aims to cover seven main areas of learning: -

Prime areas of learning

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Physical Development

Communication and Language

Specific areas of learning

Literacy

Mathematics

Understanding the World

Expressive Arts and Design

Where specific individual development needs are identified, children will be effectively monitored and supported within the setting. If external support is necessary (e.g. speech therapy) this will be accessed with the agreement of parents/carers.

To learn more about the stages of development for your child, take a look at ‘What to Expect When’ (Download here). It offers a full explanation of the EYFS and is a useful tool to support parents and carers.

We carry out ongoing formative assessment on your child which is fundamental to their progress. Throughout the EYFS our practitioners observe, assess and plan for children’s next steps in learning and development so that they achieve and progress well. Practitioners consider ways in which they can support a child to strengthen and extend their current learning and development stage.

Observing your child will enable practitioners to identify how they learn, what their interests are, what they already know and how they interact with people and the environment. Practitioners will identify through assessment where your child currently is on their unique development pathway in order to build on their experiences and provide further learning opportunities.

Our children are at the centre of everything we do and we want them to learn how to make the most of opportunities, embrace challenges, develop skills and achieve high standards.

Learning and Development Records

Babies, toddlers and pre-school children are continuously observed, assessed and planned for to ensure their future achievements.

Records are kept to provide information to governing bodies (OFSTED), parents, other practitioners and for transition to their next setting.Throughout a child's progress we ensure their interests and preferences are considered and their voice acknowledged.

All children's work is valued and is displayed throughout nursery to build self-esteem and to develop their appreciation and respect of others work.

Progress throughout the Early Foundation Stage curriculum at Little Jo's is a shared responsibility of the practitioner, the parent and the child.

When you enrol your child at this happy, lively nursery and pre-school, we will appoint a Key Person to provide individual care for your child and to work closely with them to ensure their progress through the Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum.

Safeguarding Policy

At Little Jo's Day Nursery we believe that the health, safety and welfare of each child is of paramount importance.

Children learn best when they are healthy, safe and secure, when their individual needs are met, and when they have positive relationships with the adults caring for them. Each individual has a right to feel safe, secure and protected. We ask that parents contribute to the policy review process as an important part of the annual (or more frequent) procedure.

Find out more about our Nursery & Pre-School Timetables - call us on 01226 779199 to speak to one of our day-care or nursery staff who will be happy to help with any queries you have. PLEASE NOTE: Calls are recorded for training and monitoring purposes.